Brothers in arms
by Original Prankster
Summary: Sereda Aeducan isn't the only one to notice the striking resemblance between Alistair and Anders. Rated T for Oghren's innuendos.


'So, that Maric.' She closed her eyes when she heard the dwarves chuckle and sighed. She put the pen down and turned to look at Oghren with a raised eyebrow. One of these days she would have to get some dwarven made furniture in this room, if only to avoid the inelegant position she was currently in by having her legs dangle several inches off the floor. Of course it would be Oghren who noticed.

'What are you talking about?' She asked mildly, it was hard to get an upper hand on the dwarf, he had no shame and if you did get one over on him he just started shouting. Which she was sort of fond of these days.

'You know, seems like he parted the pink sea more than once.' He smirked at her.

'He what?'

'Slimed his banana. Buttered the mu…' She held her hands up.

'By the Ancestors! Do you spend your spare time making those up?' She asked with a horrified expression.

He sniffed and gave her a smirk. 'Sometimes. But don't think you'll be distracting me today woman.'

She looked at his expression. 'Why the sudden interest in a dead mans private life?' Oghren barked in amusement giving her that horrible eye that he was currently soberish and knew exactly what he was about.

'You don't uh… think that Alistair reminds you of someone.' Maybe if she stared at him blankly for a while then he would go away. As she tried to stare at him Oghren's mouth quirked just a little. 'I've seen the way you look at him.'

'Alistair?'

'Anders.'

'I am not looking at Anders in any way!' Oghren started laughing. She grabbed her sword off the table and jumped down from the chair. 'By the stone if you so much as breathe a word to anyone…' She threatened which only made Oghren laugh harder and he steadied himself against the wall.

'I didn't even have to make the joke about you giving him some pu… Okay I stopped, I stopped!' She removed the sword from his chest but doing so only made him start laughing again.

'Anyway, you have no proof.' She said decidedly.

'Of which thing are we talking about?' He smirked at her and she gave him the stare. 'Well what do you think? Is Anders a bastard or not?'

'Most certainly, he's spent too much time hanging around you.' She sat down and tried to go back to her work. 'Damn it Oghren do you even think about the consequences of what you're suggesting?' He seemed to consider that for a moment and then shrugged.

'That's your job. Don't you think you'd better figure this out before Alistair gets here?' He asked. 'When he back from Weishaupt?'

'Within the week.'

'Maybe you should send Anders somewhere to keep him occupied.'

'Like where?'

Oghren smirked. 'Circle?'

'Now that's just mean.' She said.

*

She didn't send Anders to the Circle, however she did want some answers and they were the only people who might know anything. She wrote to Wynne, she'd heard that the mage convention in Cumberland had come up with few answers to the problems they were facing. She explained the problem in as much detail as she thought she could bear and sent it off with Nathanial, being the only one she could really trust with this who wasn't an apostate or a rotting corpse.

She was brooding on top of the battlements, in the vain hope that she could see Alistair coming and then run out to distract him before things got incredibly surreal. 'You've been avoiding me.' She had to do a double take, he sounded just like him. 'Not only that but Ser Pounce-a-lot is beginning to think you're avoiding him too.' Anders held the kitten out in front of him and it meowed in her face.

'I've not been avoiding you, don't you have mages to train?' She asked in irritation and he flicked his eyebrow up in amusement.

'I had two, but as of this morning I have one.' He shrugged. 'He decided that the life of a warden wasn't for him and ran before the joining.' He brought the kitten to his chest to stroke thoughtfully.

'Wondering if you should join him?' She asked and he grinned at the question before shaking his head.

'Not yet, there will be a time in the future when I run a mile I'm sure but until then you're stuck with me.' He looked at her from the corner of his eyes. 'Is that such a bad thing?' She hesitated and looked for a rose about his person, she was beginning to find it eerie.

'No, I'm glad to have you aboard, we need capable mages and after that fight with the mother no one will ever doubt you.' She gave him a smile.

'You'd be surprised about that I think.' There was a long pause. 'So… Oghren tells me that, how did he put it? Oh yes, the man that wets your whistle, is coming to see you soon.' For a second she plotted Oghren's cruel and unusual death.

'Alistair you mean.' She gave him a pointed look.

'That's the one.' He looked off into the distance for a moment. 'Was set to be our king at one point I heard.' He began conversationally and she looked at him wordlessly. 'Well, I heard it was your decision to not put him on the throne. Was it a confidence issue or…?' He trailed off and looked at her.

'Alistair is a good man, he could maybe have run the kingdom well but he didn't want to. Anora did, plus she had the practical knowledge that he didn't. Besides, in what world do you see the king with a dwarf?' She asked and he gave a faint smile.

'You wanted to keep him.' He said with understanding.

'Is that so wrong?'

He shrugged. 'Speaking to the wrong person if you want condemnation. Life's too short. Ours is doubly so.' He looked at her for a moment. 'I look forward to meeting him.'

'As what? Grey warden or the royal bastard?'

'Both no doubt. Not sure you can switch one or the other off.' He grinned at her.

'You don't speak much about your past.' She noted, wondering if she could get him to tell her something.

'Neither do you.' She frowned at that.

'You mean that you've not heard the stories? That I was hatched, fully formed from the stone in plate armour, sent by the ancestors to end the blight forever?' She raised her eyebrow pointedly.

'Oghren tried that line on Velanna once, the hatching from the stone thing.' He smirked at the memory.

'Yes, and Sigrun bore the brunt of that.' She took a breath and frowned.

'Yeah she's not doing so well.' Anders glanced at her. 'So what is the real story? I assume there is one, especially with the heraldry on the shield.' She looked down at the shield and smiled faintly.

'House Aeducan.' She looked up at him. 'That's the crest. Was born Princess Sereda Aeducan, my oldest brother, Trian, was murdered by my youngest brother, I was framed for it, exiled to the deep roads, joined the wardens and then the rest you've probably heard.' He stared at her for a long moment.

'You sound very calm.' She gave a faint smile and shrugged.

'I made my peace with it when I got to deny my brother the throne.'

He tutted. 'Using your position for a personal vendetta, that's not the Commander we all follow and adore.' He grinned at her.

'What about you? What was your life like before the mages took you in?' He made a face at that.

'Not much to tell, my mother was a soldier, fought to oust the Orlesians, I was born not long after. She got a decent enough pension to raise me and I spent most of my time running about the streets getting grubby.' He grinned.

'What about your father?' He shrugged.

'My mother never spoke about him, I assume that means she didn't know who he was. Understandable, it gets lonely in those camps at night.' Sereda nodded, either that or his mother kept her tongue.

'She still alive?' He frowned at that.

'I… don't know.' His expression contorted to one of confliction. 'The circle cuts your ties with families, because if you never feel conflicted about something your never get those dangerous opinions that scare the templars so.' He scowled.

'You never wanted to look her up?'

'No. She gave me up a little too willingly if you catch my drift.' She could well imagine the reason why, once you became a mage all your past didn't matter and what better place to hide him.

'Never wanted an explanation either?' He made a face.

'Not all of us get to depose those that wrong us.'

*

It was easier to be a commander instead of a woman some times. You dress up in plate armour with the warden's crest on it and you look important. You don't have to compare yourself with the long willowy elves and humans and wonder what the love of your life sees in you. She looked at the dress she had been given as it hung in the wardrobe, they had tried to make a human court dress in dwarven sizes and it just look preposterous. She strapped on the breastplate, she was the commander, not some pretty flower and they'd better damn well treat her as such.

They were trying to turn this into a proper ceremony and she hated that. None of this could be made better by trying to pretty it up. She opened the side door to the great hall, five of them this time, more and more people being found willing, there had been no conscriptions in months and yet their numbers kept growing.

Anders looked at her wordlessly and handed her the cup, she nodded at him. 'This is the day that you become Grey Wardens.' She said quietly. 'It was nearly a hundred years since the beginning of the first Blight that the first Wardens drank of darkspawn blood and mastered it's taint.' She kept this secret but she saw the shock of her words register on some of the faces, only one nodded to himself as if he had always suspected. She remembered Duncan's words from her joining and she always spoke them, because she could never forget Daveth's death throes. 'We pay a heavy price for what we are. Fate may demand that you pay your price now.'

'This ceremony is simple.' Anders said. 'No one knows who spoke these words, but they have been said since the first…'

'Join us, brothers and sisters.' Seven head turned to the side door in surprise. 'Join us in the shadows where we stand vigilant.' She smiled softly, feeling her heart leap up in her chest. 'Join us as we carry the duty which cannot be forsworn. And, should you perish, know that your sacrifice will not be forgotten.' He stepped to her side. 'And that one day, we shall join you.'

'Oris. You must now submit yourself to the taint.' She said softly, trying very hard to ignore Alistair's presence. Of course it became easier to ignore when the first candidate choked on the blood and screamed himself to death. She'd never had anyone refuse the cup but if that was your first experience you can see why you would. She crouched down next to the screaming man and touched his head gently. 'I am sorry Oris.'

After a moment she stood and looked at the tiny little mage that had made her way from the circle, human, but only a head taller than Sereda herself. She stared at her in fear. 'Disove. It is time.' She stepped forward with the cup and the girl stared into her eyes. Sereda would not flinch, she owed them too much to do so. With shaking hands the girl took the cup and drank. Alistair reached out and put his hand on her shoulder as the girl doubled over. A thin, feeble cry echoed around the hall as her body died.

She gazed at the others who stared at the bodies and she saw the doubt in their eyes. 'They will not be forgotten. They will be written in the annals of the Grey, but the joining is not yet over.'

'How many survive this?' One asked in alarm.

'More than die.' Alistair said, his voice soothing.

'I… can't.' The next said before she even spoke his name and she took a sharp breath, Alistair drew his sword wordlessly.

'If you do not, then death is certain.' She said calmly, seeing how that shook up the others. He did not refuse, but he died in terror. At the fourth death she was almost willing to turn her back and let the last one make it out alive. 'Panad.' They stared at him wordlessly as he drank and as he died.

'Maker's breath.' Anders whispered to himself, seeing the five recruits prostrate on the floor and Sereda, not believing in the maker, sent a prayer to the ancestors. 'I've never seen not one person make it before.'

Sereda nodded, neither had she. She swallowed, holding the cup in her hand tightly as she stared at the bodies. She turned and walked over to the fire, tossing the cup in and hearing the remaining blood sizzle. 'It happens.' She looked up at Alistair. 'There are joinings where everybody lives.' Anders glanced at him and then nodded.

'But are they as rare as I think they are?' Anders asked.

'Statistically speaking, more survive than die.' He looked down. 'You wouldn't think it from today. But I did ask that question when I was in Weisshaupt.' Alistair looked down and then began setting the bodies to right. 'What do you do with the dead here?' He asked.

'There will be a ceremony tonight.' She said, a little shaken up. 'Dwarva are buried, elves and humans are burnt, out on the bluff.' She hesitated. 'We usually get those of their joining to lead the ceremony.'

'I guess that's your job tonight then.' Anders looked at her.

'Thanks for that.' She said dryly and began to help Alistair, who coughed at her politely. She blinked at him. 'Oh!' This was not how she thought to introduce them. 'Anders, Alistair. Alistair, Anders.'

'Nice to meet you, good to know the circle are letting mages come and join. We desperately need them.' He said shaking his hand and Anders laughed. Alistair frowned at that and looked at her questioningly.

She sighed. 'One of these days someone will say something about the Circle and you won't need to immediately rush to fill the void with noise.' She told Anders and Alistair frowned, he wasn't stupid, he just pretended he was.

'You're an apostate?'

'No, technically I'm a Grey Warden.' Anders gave him a grin and she felt the ice in Alistair's gaze.

'Okay, let's do this the complicated way. Alistair _ex_-templar meet Anders _ex_-apostate.' She looked at them both. 'And as commander of the Grey I am telling you to remember the ex part of those titles. Now help me move the bodies.'

*

The sky was lit with a thousand shimmering lights that swirled in patterns she could never remember. Alistair had tried to tell her about constellations but she had been too astounded with the sky and sometimes she still looked up and wondered when she would fall into it. She swallowed and looked around, two dozen Wardens stood on the bluff, as many as there had been when she had joined. Alistair's expression was unreadable as he looked at them all but she knew his thoughts, the Warden's were his family, he just didn't know them yet.

She stepped forwards, every person here had lost someone during their joining. She took hold of the burning torch. 'In war, victory. In peace, vigilance. In death, sacrifice.' Nothing more needed to be said, they were all living on borrowed time. Wordlessly she turned and placed the torch in the centre of the pyre, the oil caught and the four bodies began to burn.

She didn't know who began to sing but they were human, it was their way. Songs and litany made up their religion, but it was not hers. She looked up at Oghren who nodded at her and the two dwarves made their way to the graveyard. The stone was chalk, not for building, but good enough to gouge a simple stone chamber. Wordlessly they placed the single body into the tomb and began to pile the rocks they had gathered on top. This was the second grave here, the first time she had sent to Orzammar and they had responded. The two looked at the engraved stone that had been sent from their home city. The hammer of Orzammar and the Griffin of the Wardens.

'What does it say?' She looked back, Alistair had broken from the humans and elves and had followed.

'They swiped it from one of the abandoned Thaigs.' Oghren said. 'Was an entry stone.'

'Their souls will go into the stone of their ancestors.' Oghren snorted at that, he had married a paragon, his own faith was shaky at the best of times.

'Traditions mean nothing to surface dwarves.' He said acidly and Sereda smiled faintly.

'Let one who comes within the Thaig,

Know that Paragons have walked within these halls

Know that mothers have bled upon these stones

And when from the Deep Roads shadows crept

We clans arose, our vows were kept,

Deaths resolute, no tears were wept.' She looked at Oghren. 'Not to you maybe, or to me, but to those that come after.'

'Depends if you believe the Architect or not.' He snorted. 'Time for the best part of dwarven funerals.'

'The beer?' Alistair asked.

Oghren chuckled. 'The orgy.' Oghren had never tired of tormenting Alistair. 'What do you say commander? Teach Alistair about dwarven traditions. How about you invite Anders too so you can compare?' He laughed at her expression and then took in Alistair's, his laughter, if it were possible, getting even more filthy. 'You mean you… you didn't tell him?' He asked her.

'I thought you might be able to keep your mouth shut until after the funeral.' Naturally this sent Oghren into helpless guffaws.

'Is there something I should know?' Alistair asked, his expression one of self doubt and anger. Sereda slapped Oghren upside the head.

'Hey! This is a funeral, show some sodding respect.' Oghren said, rubbing his head.

'Wasn't it you who taught me to give into my inner rage?' She snapped and then looked at Alistair. 'Yes, but not here and… it's nothing sinister, before you start getting paranoid.' Fortunately the singing had masked the dwarven burial rights and she glowered at Oghren for a moment. 'Let's go to my office. Not you.' She said as the other dwarf started to come too.

Alistair followed her wordlessly back into the keep, eerily silent with everyone outside. He took a deep breath and she looked back at him as she sat down. 'Did something… happen?' She raised her eyebrow for a second. 'With the mage?' She blinked at him and wondered what he was talking about.

'With Anders? By the stone! No!' She exclaimed in surprise. 'I mean, he flirted but after Zev it was the most chaste flirting in the world.'

'Not the most reassuring thing you could have said.' Alistair said after a moment.

'It's not like that. No, really, it's not.' She sighed and shook her head. 'This is the thing, I don't want to tell you and be wrong.' He raised an eyebrow at that. 'I've sent Howe to the tower to find out for me.' She held her hand up as Alistair got that smile and opened his mouth. 'Don't make that joke, Anders already made it and if you do it too…' She shook her head.

'Tell me what the problem is.' Alistair said with a frown. 'Whatever it is, it can't be as bad as what you're making it out to be.' She sighed. 'Proof can come later, I won't act on what you're going to tell me without proof I promise.'

She nodded and looked at the ceiling. 'I think you're brothers.'

Alistair's expression seemed to hang as his brain tried to process that. 'W… why would you think that?' He asked and she made a face.

'Because…' She frowned, it seemed like very flimsy evidence. 'Because you look like each other. I mean if you were able to hold a razor closer to your face you would look identical.' He opened his mouth. 'And you sound the same, when he speaks behind me I could swear it was you.'

'But he's a mage!' He said.

'And you can do all that templar stuff without lyrium.' He scowled. 'I'm just saying.'

He was silent and stared at the floor, he could easily fall into brooding but closed his eyes before taking a breath and looking at her. 'What about his childhood? I know you, everyone tells you everything.'

'Only after I bribe them with gifts.' Alistair gave a dry chuckle.

'Tell me.' He said gently.

'His mother was a soldier in your father's war, he was born just after it ended and his mother raised him on her pension.'

'Well that's a lie, pregnant soldiers don't get a…' He stopped and looked at her. 'Oh… yeah that's pretty damning isn't it?'

'His mother never told him who his father was, he sort of assumes that she didn't know.' Alistair took in a deep breath and then made a noise.

'I don't know how to take this.' He admitted after a moment.

'I didn't want to tell you until I heard back from Wynne.' He gave her a soft smile.

'Just tell me one thing. Who's more attractive?'

She laughed. 'How about we go to my room and I show you.'


End file.
